1. Field of the Invention
This invention relates generally to shipping containers. More specifically, the invention relates to an expendable shipping container for shipping and storing live goods, e.g., nursery plants, shrubs and the like.
2. Prior Art
Live plants are commonly grown at nurseries and then shipped to remote destinations for sale. Current methods employed by the industry for shipping plants are cumbersome and expensive. The plants are either simply placed on the floor of an appropriate vehicle, such as a truck or trailer or other transportation media, referred to as "floor-loading", for shipment to remote destinations, or are placed in trays that are stored in re-usable metal racks placed in the vehicle.
Floor-loading of plants is time consuming, costly, and labor intensive. Moreover, this method does not utilize the height of a truck or trailer, and frequently results in damage to the plants. Also, less-than-truckload (LTL) shipments via common carriers are not feasible with this method.
The use of trays stored in re-usable metal racks enables the height of a truck or trailer to be better utilized, but this method is expensive, requiring large up-front equipment costs and substantial shipping charges for handling and returning empty metal racks to the nurseries. Moreover, the size and/or variety of sizes of plants which may be shipped via this method is severely limited by the size and shape of the racks.
Currently, there is no satisfactory expendable means of shipping goods in the nursery/plant industry, nor are there any acceptable conventional methods for less-than-truckload shipments of live nursery plants, nor is there any means available in the industry for permitting handling of the plants with hi-lo or pallet jacks, or for efficient containerized shipping of a variety of different size plants, or for shipping plants in convenient, economical, stackable, expendable containers.
Accordingly, there is need for a satisfactory expendable means of shipping goods in the nursery/plant industry, and for an economical and convenient means for less-than-truckload shipments of live nursery plants, and for permitting handling of the plants with hi-lo or pallet jacks, and for containerized shipping of a variety of different size plants, and for shipping plants in convenient, economical, stackable, expendable containers.